Sparkyville, USAEpisode 9: You're Fired!
by HPDrummerman
Summary: After the board of directors at Gray Industries relieve Violet of her duties as COO, she blames Sally and, by extension, Charlie Brown, for her firing, even though he wasn't involved in any way. She plots to get revenge once and for all on the entire Brown family. Linus, meanwhile, gets another visit from Mary Jo and wonders if she's seeing someone.
1. Chapter 1

Episode 9: You're Fired!

**CHAPTER 1: AFTER THE FALL**

Violet was still reeling from being demoted from COO of Gray Industries to a regular worker within the company. Her father had placed her in charge of marketing, as he needed a new marketing director for that department. Violet decided she would bite the bullet and take the lesser position. She still blamed the Brown family for her predicament, even though they weren't to blame at all. She was planning some sort of retaliation against them, but that would have to wait, for now.

One particular day, Violet was working in her new office in marketing when one of the interns came delivering mail to her.

"Here's your mail, Ms. Gray," the intern said with a smile.

"Oh, thanks," grunted Violet.

"Anything else you need, ma'am?" the intern asked innocently.

"As a matter of fact, yes there is something I need. I need you to try to convince my father to give me my old job back as COO of Gray Industries. I need someone to help me rid the world of the Brown family who reside here in Sparkyville! I need someone to help pick up my dry cleaning! I NEED SOMEONE WHO KNOWS HOW TO MAKE SOME DAMN COFFEE IN THIS FUCKING BUILDING!" The intern fled her office, thinking she went nuts.

"Where'd they go?" asked a suddenly calmer Violet. She resumed her work and continued to think about how best to serve up revenge to the Browns.

Patty was wrapping up her work in the building. She reported to her boss Howard to pick up her paycheck. She had come a long way from where she was and was ready to move ahead in life.

"Here you go, Patty," said Howard. "Keep up the good work."

"Thanks, Howard," said Patty. "I think I'm going to unwind this weekend and maybe take in a movie."

"Sounds like a plan. Anyway, have a good weekend."

"You too." And Patty started to leave Gray Industries to enjoy her weekend. As she was heading out the door, she bumped into Violet.

"Hey watch where you are-" It was then that Violet recognized her former best friend. "Patty?!"

"Hi, Violet," said Patty, coldly.

"What are YOU doing here?"

"I clean this place. I work for Hennepin Cleaners."

"That's you that's cleaning around here? Wow! You look awful, Patty. What happened to you?"

"Well, after our falling out in high school, I got in with the wrong crowd. Got involved in drugs and alcohol and even faced prison time at one point. But I got help and moved back here and got a job at Hennepin, which happened to have an opening here at G.I. for me."

"Well, for what it's worth, it's good to see you. Oh, did you hear that loser Charlie Brown is back in town?"

"Yes, I know, Violet. He's a Staff Sergeant for the Marine Corps now."

"How did you know?!"

"Linus told me. And I think it's wonderful!"

"WHAT?!"

"Surprised to hear me say that? To say that I'm glad Charlie Brown actually made something out of himself and not stay the failure he once was? Well I'm proud of him proving all of us wrong, Violet! He finally went from a loser to a winner. I can acknowledge that!"

"He may dress fancy and flaunt that rank of his around, but deep down, he's the same wishy-washy failure-face he's always been. He was a loser then, and definitely a loser NOW! He's not fooling me one bit!"

"Dear God in Heaven, Violet, you are delusional! He is far from the same Charlie Brown we knew growing up! Everyone else, but you, have accepted that the old Charlie Brown we once knew is gone forever. God, even Lucy, of all people, has accepted that he's changed!"

"Lucy is now a dirty convicted felon. She's now as much a loser as HE is. In fact the one thing Charlie Brown DOES have going for him is that at least HE doesn't have a criminal record like she does."

"Violet, you're the only person here that hasn't changed. You're that same insecure girl who bragged about how much better your father is compared to the other kids in the neighborhood. Why don't you do us all a favor and grow the fuck up!" And Patty left for home. Violet stood for a minute.

"I am NOT that girl!" she said to herself. The words meant nothing, even as she said them. They were as hollow as she was.

**NEXT CHAPTER: ANOTHER CHANCE ENCOUNTER**


	2. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER 2: IT'S NOW OR NEVER, LINUS**

Linus was putting books away at the library when Mary Jo entered returning a book. Linus saw her and decided to talk to her and find out if she was busy that afternoon. He walked over to where she was at.

"Hi, Mary Jo," he said. She turned around.

"Oh, hi, Linus," Mary Jo said, with a smile. "How are you, honey?"

"I'm good. Listen, I am glad you came in today because I wanted to ask you something."

"Okay sure."

"Are you busy this afternoon? I mean, do you have to work at the hospital at all today?"

"Actually, I don't have to go in until later this evening. I'm working the late shift tonight so I'm free until 8 PM."

"Well, I was wondering if you would like to go out for coffee. I get out at 4:30."

"I would love to, honey. Just give me a call when you do and I'll meet up with you."

"Okay then. I'll see you later today."

"Okay, I'll see you, Linus." And she kissed him on the cheek and left. One of Linus's co-workers walked up to him.

"Dude, you know her?" he asked.

"We were kind of childhood sweethearts growing up," said Linus, still smiling from the kiss. "She was a pretty girl back then, but she's grown into a beautiful woman now."

"Well, here's hoping things work out for you two," said the co-worker. He went back to work, as did Linus, while making plans to meet at a nearby coffee shop.

On the west side of town at Ray's Diner, Pat and Mary were finishing up for the day. They were wiping down their booths and re-filling the salt and pepper shakers and the sugar dispensers for coffee. Ray was cleaning his grill and his main cook was filtering the deep fryers and cleaning the oil. As they cleaned, Pat and Mary chatted about their plans for the weekend.

"Chuck and I are going to the orchard to get some cider this weekend," said Pat. "You want us to get something for you and Monica, Mare?"

"Sure, we could use some cider," Mary responded. "Monica and I haven't been to the orchard in a while. Maybe we'll join you, if you don't mind, of course."

"We could meet up there. I'm sure Chuck wouldn't have a problem with that."

"Okay then, we will be there, as well!"

"Cool." Pat turned to Ray and said, "Hey, Ray! Mary and I are done with our work!"

"Okay, Reichardt," Ray responded. "Before you both leave, I have your paychecks." And Ray handed the women their checks.

"Now I can buy that fancy yacht!" joked Mary.

"Always the aristocrat, eh, Mare?" giggled Pat.

"Thanks, Ray," said Mary. "We'll see you Monday."

"Have fun, ladies," said Ray.

**NEXT CHAPTER: PSYCHOSIS**


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER 3: VIOLET'S OBSESSION**

Violet was at her condo in a rich part of Sparkyville, having a drink while taking a bath. She was thinking about how much she hated the Brown family, especially Charlie. Why did he hate him so much? Did he steal something from her? Did he hit her and she held a grudge ever since? What is it that he did to earn her wrath even to this day? While many of his detractors, Lucy Van Pelt included, have grown up and even accepted that he was no longer the Charlie Brown of old, Violet, in her mind, would NOT accept the fact that he wasn't a failure anymore. Maybe the reason why she hated him so much was the fact that as a kid, he was the total antithesis of who she was.

Both had fathers that were successful businessmen. Grant with Gray Industries, and Silas with his barber shop. Both were well off and made good money in their endeavors. But what differentiated the Browns from the Grays was the fact that Silas was always there for his family, while Grant, though loving his daughter and always willing to do something for her, was largely absent to run Gray Industries. But that didn't mean that Grant didn't love his family; he was busy running a multi-million company. And running a huge company like Gray Industries needs the head of the company to make sure it stays successful. In the case of the Browns with Silas's barber shop, it was a smaller, mom-and-pop business, for sure. And while he didn't accumulate the wealth of the Grays, his family wasn't worse off, either. And being a barber meant that Silas could come home and be with his family more often and even plan out things for them to do together. Pretty much, Silas was there for his family in a way Grant wasn't for his.

Plus with a warm family environment, Charlie and Sally could grow into respectable human beings. And Charlie, in particular, was always nice and kind to his friends and fellow classmates. And aside from telling Lucy that she was the worst player in the history of baseball whenever she played on the team, he never had a cruel thing to say about anyone. Violet, on the other side of the spectrum, was mean-spirited, vain, and heartless. In fact, outside of her inner circle which included Patty (Swanson), Eileen later in high school, Lucy, and to a lesser extent, Frieda, they ruled the mean girls with iron fists pounding proud. Lucy was the meanest of the group, but she also still had a softer side and actually like Charlie, despite being his harshest critic and biggest tormentor, besides Violet. Patty was essentially a lesser carbon copy of Violet in attitude, though less cruel than her best friend. In fact, while she would tease Charlie in tandem with Violet, when it was just her and Charlie, she would willingly hang out with him and even offer advice or needed criticism that would benefit him. Frieda was the nicer of all the girls in the group. She never had a mean thing to say about Charlie or anyone else for that matter. Frieda's biggest enemy was in fact his dog, Snoopy, who refused to chase rabbits with her. And as for Eileen, she originally moved to the states from the UK. She was a British version of Violet. But after the incident involving Lucy and Linus's cousin Gertrude, the clique fell apart. Violet and Patty fell out, Lucy wanted Violet's head on a platter for getting her innocent cousin involved, Eileen decided to distance herself from all of them, and Frieda was left wondering what happened to her friends. But Charlie would never even consider pulling a cruel prank on anyone, not even someone like Violet who deserved some comeuppance.

But the real reason behind Violet's obsession with the Browns was that she yearned for what they had: a closeness with each other. And while she loved her dad dearly, he wasn't around enough. That didn't mean she wasn't proud of him. She boasted constantly about how much her father was better than her peers fathers, especially to Charlie. But he and the other did come back at her a few times. Charlie had even said during one of these exchanges, "MY father has a son", knowing he struck a nerve with Violet, and even another kid strangely named 5, told her that his father goes to PTA meetings. Violet even boasted about his bowling, which was what Grant often liked to do during his free time. It was one of the few things Charlie and Violet could talk about without her being too insulting. But she wanted what the Browns had and that was a family-closeness. But with a father who was often busy, and a mother with a substance-abuse problem, she wasn't going to get that any time soon.

As she sipped from her wine glass, Violet thought about how she was going to get back at the Browns for them "getting her removed from COO of Gray Industries". In her mind, because Sally stood up to her, the entire Brown family were to blame. She blamed Charlie because with his newfound confidence being a Marine sergeant, he may have told Sally to stand up for HERSELF. She also blamed their parents for the simple crime of conceiving them to begin with. She eventually got out of the tub, dried herself off, and put on a robe. She went into her living room and stared out the large window which faced the city. Out in the distance, she could see the building that housed Gray Industries. As she stared at the building, her fury returned a little.

"Those Browns cost me my job as COO," she fumed to herself. "They won this battle. But the war has just begun…"

**NEXT CHAPTER: CATCHING UP OVER COFFEE**


	4. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER 4: A RAY OF HOPE**

Linus was at the local coffee shop near the hospital where Mary Jo worked. He decided to go where she could meet quickly and she could get to work on time. As he sipped his latte Linus waited for her to show up. He was wondering if she was dating anyone or if he had a chance at reuniting with her. He hadn't seen her since they were kids and now she had returned to Sparkyville. Linus was hoping he had a chance with her.

Mary Jo walked in to the coffee shop. When Linus saw her, he was blown away at how pretty she looked, even after all these years. He was ready to see if they had some sort of future.

"I had moved out east for a while, then we settled in Connecticut," Mary Jo said to Linus. "After a while, I moved back here to Sparkyville to become a nurse after graduating from college. I've been here for a few months now."

"Well I started working at the library after I got my education degree," said Linus. "I find it more rewarding than being in a classroom."

"I can understand that, Linus. So, do you have a lucky lady in your life?"

"I do not. I have dated from time to time, but no one I clicked with. How about you? Do you have a guy in your life?"

"Actually, I am single. Like you, I have dated some guys, even one guy in high school that I thought was 'the one' but turned out to be a jerk in the end."

"Well maybe you'll find that guy who's the one. Maybe he's closer than you think."

"I got that feeling, Linus." And the two of them continued to have their coffee. Eventually, Linus walked her back to the hospital and greeted her goodnight before heading back to where he parked at and went back home.

Elsewhere at Gray Industries, Violet was winding her day down and was about to head home. Patty watched as she left, but kept her distance. As fate would have it, an intern who she used to run ragged, who wasn't Sally, began to start in on her. She had almost made it out of the building without incident.

"Well, well, weeeeeeeeell," sneered the intern. "The former boss lady must be leaving for the day, eh?"

"What in the hell do you want, Gail?" asked a tired Violet.

"I just wanted to see how the mighty had fallen, that's all," said Gail, snickering. "The big, bad, Violet Gray who used to run this place with an iron fist, now demoted to manager of finance."

"I am in no mood for your bullshit, Gail! I've had a bad enough day, I don't need to be reminded of where I once was."

"I think you DO, bitch! You think you are royalty because your old man owns this place, when in reality, you're just as expendable as the regular employees here! Now that we don't have to answer to you, I can tell you to your face how much of a selfish witch you really are!"

"Heh, heh, Gail, for the love of Christ, you DON'T want to piss me off!"

"OOH, I'm-a shaking in my boots! Look, your royal bitchiness, all you ever did was sit on your ASS barking orders, having one of us interns get your dry cleaning. And who the hell has THAT many outfits that requires dry cleaning, anyway?! Not to mention your even worse treatment on Sally Brown. It's like you had a vendetta against the poor girl, and she never did ANYTHING to you! Did she end up in bed with your old man or something?!"

That was the final straw for Violet. While she could take insults hurled her way, barely, NO ONE, especially a lowly intern, insults her father. She dropped her briefcase and lunged at the intern, whom put up a good fight, herself. A crowd gathered around the two women. Patty looked from a distance and shook her head at the scene. Two burly security guards had to pull the two women apart.

"Ms. Gray, control yourself!" said one guard. Violet was almost animalistic. She was grunting and raving like a beast. Both women bared scratch marks on their faces. Violet's blouse was ripped open, exposing her bra, but she didn't care at that moment. Gail was also tattered and scratched up, ready for Round Two. Grant, who had heard the commotion, ran to see what was going on.

"Violet?" he began. "What just happened?"

"This BITCH insulted you, daddy!" growled Violet, pointing at Gail.

"All I asked was what her deal with Sally Brown was and why she was so mean to her," said Gail, innocently.

"But you-"

"ENOUGH, VIOLET!" yelled Grant. "I'm sorry to say this to my daughter, but Violet, you're fired."

"WHAT?!" gasped Violet.

"Don't bother cleaning out your desk this time," said Grant, angrily. "I'll have one of the interns do so." Violet angrily grabbed her briefcase and stormed out of the building, not wanting to hear anymore.

Grant turned to Gail and said, "And as for you, young lady. I'm going to have a talk with the dean at you school about getting you relocated to another building for you to intern at. I can't have troublemakers stirring up trouble at my business!" And Grant left himself. Gail just slowly exited the building afterwards.

Somewhere up the street, a fuming Violet was almost foaming at the mouth with anger, with rage in her eyes. Sure Gail the intern was the cause of the problem at that moment, but in her head, she KNEW who was REALLY at fault.

"That damn Brown family!" she fumed. "THEY'RE THE CAUSE OF ALL MY PROBLEMS! WELL I'M ABOUT TO SOLVE THAT PROBLEM ONCE AND FOR ALL!" And she sped back home to plan out her revenge.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**


End file.
